Jean-Pierre Sentier

This European thriller, set in Sri Lanka, attempts to expound upon the philosophical implications of life, death, and memory. JB, an academic famed for his studies of oriental culture and alcoholic who has never recovered from his wife's suicide, returns to Sri Lanka to translate a book written on glass. It is supposed to contain Buddha's discourse upon memory. While he is there, an attractive nurse, Julia asks him to assist a young boy who wants to locate his father who is now living in a Tamil-occupied area. The Tamil terrorists will kill any trespassers. Compounding JB's conflict in deciding to go is that his former home where he lived with his wife is in that area. Unbeknownst to him, the boy is really a Tamil spy. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

In this earnest drama, a rural schoolteacher who has become a strong advocate for ecological awareness and is a committed opponent of hunting in the local swamp becomes romantically embroiled with a single mother who has returned to her birthplace since just before her boy (now nine years old) was born. Despite some hard feelings from the adult population of the town (who are very pro-hunting), the teacher's romance progresses smoothly until he learns that his girlfriend's brother stuffs and mounts specimens of endangered species. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

La Soule is the name of a once-popular and now long-forgotten extremely violent sport with an ancient history, which somewhat resembles rugby. It was not uncommon for players to be left on the playing field after a game, dead or maimed. In this unusual drama, Pierre Cursey (Christophe Malavoy), a former officer in Napolean's army, seeks revenge against Francois Lemercier (Richard Bohringer), one of his soldiers, who betrayed him to the English. His plan is to track the soldier (now a village cobbler) down and humiliate him completely in a game of Soule, preferably one which results in grave injuries. It seems that the soldier's whole sense of pride in himself is invested in participation in this game. Pierre has one difficulty, though, as the nefarious soldier is not only a very good Soule player, but is the captain of a championship-winning Soule team. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Writer/director Tony Gatlif tells an offbeat tale about a romance between two people living on the fringes of the film world who have difficulty distinguishing between movies and real life. Fred Lary (Remi Martin) is the son of a movie starlet, whose one great role before she committed suicide was in a film directed by Baronski (Jean Pierre Sentier). Fred visits Baronski to learn all he can about those final days. After he reveals that he is the starlet's son, the director leaves him alone with his wife Roxanne (Fanny Ardant), a minor film star whose career is on the wane. The remainder of the film concerns the romance which develops between the two. Gatlif previously displayed his gift for romantic storytelling in the 1982 film about Gypsy life Les Princes. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

The troubled life of French sculptor Camille Claudel and her long relationship with legendary sculptor Auguste Rodin are portrayed in this passionate biographical drama, featuring an acclaimed performance by Isabelle Adjani. Beginning in the 1880s with a young Claudel's first meeting with Rodin, the film traces the development of their intense romantic bond. The growth of this relationship coincides with the rise of Claudel's career, helping her overcome prejudices against female artists. However, their romance soon sours, due to the increasing pressures of Rodin's fame and his love for another woman. These difficulties combine with her increasing doubts about the value of her work to drive Claudel into an emotional tumult that threatens to become insanity. First-time director Bruno Nuytten had previously served as a cinematographer, and he brings this experience to bear in his loving presentation of Claudel's sculpture and the lavish period setting. The dramatic approach is in tune with the impressive visuals, which present Claudel's life as a grandiose melodrama, a transformation that irritated some critics. However, few questioned the film's value as a dramatic showcase for Adjani, whose fervent portrayal was rewarded with an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. The American release version was cut to 159 minutes. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide

France (Catherine Deneuve) is a haughty, bourgeoise wife abandoned by her husband by the side of the road after a vicious quarrel. She meets Charles (Gerard Depardieu), a doctor who has spent the last two nights taking his car engine apart and now can't get it back together. The meeting of the two strangers is the focus of the film, along with their encounters with characters at a truck stop. The lonely doctor understands the disturbed woman who is in denial and who thinks her husband will be coming back for her. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

The protagonists in this drama are caught in the sleaze of the lower echelons of Paris life and are trying to get out. Clara (Ann-Gisel Glass) arrives in the underbelly of the city after escaping a dysfunctional middle-class family, and moves in with Mimi (Christine Boisson), a prostitute. Clara also meets Paul (Francois Cluzet) an escaped convict, and a romantic relationship starts to simmer. Only two major hurdles stand in their way of escaping to a better life in another city. Paul is determined to avenge the death of his father which might make it easier for the police to find him, and Mimi's pimp is equally determined to coerce Clara into a life of prostitution. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

This drama concerns two lovers who clearly do not get along, though not everything else is quite that clear. Olivia (Frederique Hender) is a stripper in a downbeat nightclub and Dutch (Philippe Leotard) is her lover. When Dutch is not drinking himself into oblivion in-between Olivia's strip routines, the couple endlessly scream at each other. After this jarring introduction, the film segues to a garbage dump that is the home of Olivia's presumed parents. Olivia travels there to go back to live with her parents, but Dutch is hot on her heels. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Jean-Pierre Sentier and Daniel Laloux joined forces to write, direct, and act in this zany comedy about two men who were sent to an island by the Ministry of Toil to make Camembert cheese boxes. Unfortunately, the men's papers fell behind a filing cabinet and it is many years before the government realizes they exist. Meanwhile, the men have forged new identities and a good life for themselves as they loyally keep up their production. When the government decides to send a team of experts to handle the situation, the two men prepare to eject these unwanted arrivals at any cost. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

The action in this attempt at farce and drama starts moving when a prostitute just out of prison overwhelms a young man with her charms in their shared train compartment and ends up getting invited to his home. Once there, other than inducing some unusual behavior in the members of the family, she plans to kill off the pimp who got her into jail on false charges -- and get away with murder. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Pauline (Carole Laure), an attractive woman, becomes the obsession of a killer, Jacques (Richard Berry) who has murdered several women. He breaks into her apartment, makes her strip, does not touch her, and leaves. Ravic (Jean-Louis Trintignant) is the police inspector trying to track down the killer and when he sees Pauline, he develops an equally neurotic obsession for the woman. The two men, police inspector and criminal, are headed for a final show-down in Pauline's apartment, and only one of them will walk out alive. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide